Kinston coach will take season game by game

Kinston head coach Ryan Geiselman patrols the sideline Aug. 30 as the Vikings take on Nash Central.

Zach Frailey / The Free Press

By Jessika Morgan / Sports Editor

Published: Wednesday, September 4, 2013 at 07:55 PM.

After two weeks of football, Kinston is at the top.

The Vikings are the only program in the Eastern Carolina 2A to post a win this season, going 2-0 to start. For the last five years, Kinston has started at least 3-0.

Going into this week’s game at Wilson Fike, Kinston coach Ryan Gieselman said his guys —voted No. 7 in the inaugural Associated Press 2A poll this week — won’t jump too far ahead of themselves after an exciting start in his inaugural campaign.

“We’ve got to stay focused,” he said. “We’ve got to go game by game. We’ve got to stay hungry but humble at the same time; (us) being 2-0 keeps us very motivated going into this week.”

Kinston faces an undefeated Fike team on the road Friday.

“They’re playing their first home game this week, so we know they’re going to be up for us,” Gieselman said of the Golden Falcons. “We’re excited about going up there and hoping to make some noise Friday night.”

Kinston has won once the road and at home in 2013. EC2A coaches voted Kinston third in this year’s preseason coach’s poll, with Ayden-Grifton on top.

The Vikings are the only program in the Eastern Carolina 2A to post a win this season, going 2-0 to start. For the last five years, Kinston has started at least 3-0.

Going into this week’s game at Wilson Fike, Kinston coach Ryan Gieselman said his guys —voted No. 7 in the inaugural Associated Press 2A poll this week — won’t jump too far ahead of themselves after an exciting start in his inaugural campaign.

“We’ve got to stay focused,” he said. “We’ve got to go game by game. We’ve got to stay hungry but humble at the same time; (us) being 2-0 keeps us very motivated going into this week.”

Kinston faces an undefeated Fike team on the road Friday.

“They’re playing their first home game this week, so we know they’re going to be up for us,” Gieselman said of the Golden Falcons. “We’re excited about going up there and hoping to make some noise Friday night.”

Kinston has won once the road and at home in 2013. EC2A coaches voted Kinston third in this year’s preseason coach’s poll, with Ayden-Grifton on top.

The Chargers have not only lost both games so far, but they fall last in the Eastern Carolina standings heading into Week 3. Greene Central is right beneath Kinston in the standings, a team who lost 16-14 to C.B. Aycock on a late-game field goal in Week 2.

“It’s one of those things that’s hard for the kids because they left it all out on the field,” said Rams coach Allen Wooten, also in his first year. “You saw the pain in their eyes at the end and you knew they were hungry and they were not satisfied.”

He said the team needs to limit its penalties while being efficient on the field. They face Southwest Edgecombe on the road Friday, and Wooten said they won’t add any wrinkles to the game but work with what they’ve got.

Gieselman said the same of Kinston.

“We’re just going to keep doing what we’ve been doing,” he said. “Our offense is pretty much the same. … The kids know what’s going on, so they’ll just keep pressing forward and taking all of their summer hard work and putting it out on the field Friday night.”

Jessika Morgan can be reached at 252-559-1078 and Jessika.Morgan@Kinston.com. Follow her on Twitter @JessikaMorgan.